When Greg Osterland was growing up, a cherished family holiday tradition was going to his aunt and uncle’s house after the Christmas Eve church service to watch the 1989 movie National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation . The family, who could quote the entire movie on mute, had an all-in-good-fun rule: Act out a scene from the movie, or you don’t get to eat Christmas Eve dinner.
Greg, who was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF) when he was 6, retained a passion for this beloved movie into adulthood. Then, when he and his wife, Rachel, were house hunting, they found a home in Wadsworth, Ohio, that had a similar look to the iconic house in the film—which gave him an idea.
Why don’t we deck out our house just like the Griswold house during the holidays? he thought. But there was more…